Shoup Airlines

A Certain Moral Declivity

For those who don’t know, I have found myself voluntarily attached to the 640th DASB (Division Air Support Battalion) of the 40th Infantry Division (Mechanized) of the California Army National Guard. Whew, there’s a mouthful! Anyway, during my latest weekend warrior outing we spent a little time in the “E.S.T. 3000,” a weapons simulator for training infantry that would make any video game player collapse in a heap of ecstasy just at the name of it.

There are nine stations with various weapons, mostly M16s, an M203, an AT-4, and an M249, affectionately known as the “SAW.” All weapons are the real thing but because you’re shooting at a giant movie screen, the weapons fire a “laser,” (said in my best Dr. Evil voice) and then recorded and scored by a computer. The weapons are also attached to air compressors to simulate pretty darn accurate recoils. Let’s just say the 17 year old gal firing the AT-4 got knocked back on her butt! The only downside was the graphics running on the screens. I was expecting something more akin to Xbox type detail, but what we got was a little more N64ish. You guys need to pay a little more in taxes. However, I don’t think a single soul cared as we fired automatic weapons that would jam, need to be reloaded, and so on, until our hearts content or there weren’t any “enemies” left.

To make a long story longer, myself on an M16 and a friend on the SAW next to me apparently caught the attention of the instructor with our scores. We were separated from the group and told to expect a “second evaluation.” Pvt. Morrell smiled knowing we would get to use the sim again; I wasn’t so sure, learning of late, that you cannot assume anything with the Guard. Sure enough, we took a written test! I’ve taken many a test probing the mind, emotional state, personality traits, etc., but never have I completed a test that had so many off the wall questions like the darker “have you ever wanted to eviscerate another human being?” or the just completely insane “are you afraid of teddy bears?” I will never forget that question for the rest of my days.

We later discovered that the test was a focus on morals and human interaction. Why? Because they wanted to see if either one of us had the “abstract” morality to be a sniper. The brass were happy to know that Pvt. Morrell was being trained as an infantry soldier because that can lead to sniper training, they quickly ushered him out of the room. Then the Captain gave me a look I didn’t like. A gaze that said I was the buffet table and he, the third world malnourished child with plate in hand. He was disappointed to hear I was headed for the Blackhawk, for I had scored a “certain moral declivity and societal detachability” on the test. The Captain then went on to assure me his door would always be open if I decided to change career paths or not make it in the helicopter. How does one sleep after being told he or she is disconnected from the world and shows lethal killing abilities?